Can you believe it’s Christmas already? Though the end of the year has certainly crept up fast, BM Renew has been busy laying the foundations for the first community-owned renewable energy group in the Blue Mountains (and wider Sydney region).
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We believe renewable energy has a place in the Blue Mountains, owned by the community for the community.
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Community-owned renewable energy projects around the world have not only cut the need for energy sources like coal and gas – destructive for our land, oceans and climate – they have created local jobs, lowered electricity bills and given self-sufficient power back to communities.
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BM Renew in 2012
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We’ve been pretty quiet about our progress, but plenty has been happening behind the scenes.
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This year BM Renew has identified three possible renewable energy technologies: medium-scale solar PV, wind and pyrolisis.
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Pyrolisis, the treatment of green waste in such a way that produces syngas to generate electricity and biochar (a soil improver), is an exciting option that would address a critical waste issue in the Blue Mountains.
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BM Renew has met with the Mayor, Deputy Mayor and senior staff of the Blue Mountains City Council to investigate this opportunity. You may have seen this article in the Gazette.
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BM Renew has also chosen to formally establish itself as a Co-operative, giving all active members an equal say in decisions. We have been actively looking into several funding opportunities and have been raising awareness of the group at many events, most recently at the Love Lawson Festival.
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BM Renew in 2013
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Next year we plan to:
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- Formally establish a Co-operative
- Further develop plans for the proposed Pyrolysis waste-to-energy plant
- Work on plans for one or more commercial-scale solar photovoltaic projects
- Seek funding from council, state and federal governments to further these plans
- Seek funding from individuals as shareholders in BM Renew
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What a great year! Looking forward to working with everyone in 2013.